This day in the war in the Pacific 65 years ago.

[syscom3]

I thought I would start a new thread on the 65th anniversary of the events of the war in the Pacific. Feel free to contribute.

December 9th, 1941...Japanese troops occupy Bangkok, Thailand's capital. Thailand promptly signs an alliance with Japan. The Japanese make more landings on the Thai coast, heading into north Malaya, through dense jungles, to Singapore.

The only two confronting nations not at war are Germany and the United States. Adolf Hitler, enroute to Berlin, tells his advisors that Franklin D. Roosevelt will do all he can to avoid a two-ocean war. Even so, he orders Nazi U-Boats to attack American shipping off the East Coast.

At Pearl Harbor, rescue workers with oxy-acetylene torches
cut through USS Oklahoma's capsized hull and 15-inch armor to reach trapped crewmen inside. The last survivor is pulled out this day...QM1 H.S. Kennedy, father of NASU's last commanding officer.

Japanese troops land on Tarawa and Makin in the Gilbert islands.

[Vassili Zaitzev]

Neat, can't wait till June when the anniversary of the Midway campaign comes up.

[Nonskimmer]

Another interesting idea for a thread.
Can't wait to read more.

[Wildcat]

Cool thread! Let me play catch up.
Dec 8 (from my post in the other thread)
No. 1 sqn RAAF launched a series of attacks against the Japanese invasion forces, sinking 2 ships and numerous barges and damaging one other vessel. These attacks were made by Hudsons at mast top height, two a/c were lost in the initial attack.

Dec 8 Australia announces that it is at war with Japan. Some 17,000 Australians would die in the three-and-a-half-year war against Japan, 8,000 as prisoners of war.

This is a good thread Sys, hopefully a few people will post on it so we get an idea of all the events by various nations. What is about to happen on Dec 10 should be well known to most here.

[syscom3]

Wildcat, I always enjoy your posts regarding the ANZAC contributions. Please keep up your good work.

And if you would like to post for what happened on Dec 10th, please do. (I know what happened).

[syscom3]

Syscom3 notes: For the Japanese invasion of the PI, one of the locations they invaded and seized is "Aparri". This is located on the very northern tip of Luzon and a small airbase is constructed there, giving the IJN fighter coverage throughout the northern PI.

I also included some info on the German extermination program, as it was formulated at this same time period.

HONG KONG: Early in the morning, elements of the Japanese 38th Division attack the Shing Mun Redoubt. The redoubt consists of five pillboxes connected by trenches and underground tunnels designed to be held by a battalion for five weeks; it falls in five hours. The defenders, the 2nd Battalion, Royal Scots Regiment, are suffering from malaria and cannot hold. British Major General Christopher Maltby, General Officer Commanding Hong Kong, pulls his troops, including two battalions of
partially trained Canadians, back to Hong Kong Island.

MALAYA: As the Japanese continue destructive attacks on airfields in northwestern Malaya, the RAF abandons the airfield at Sungei Patani and withdraws all serviceable aircraft from Butterworth. From Butterworth,
an RAF bomber squadron reduced to two aircraft, withdraws to Taiping and No. 21 Squadron, RAAF equipped with (F2A) Buffalo Mk. Is (six repairable aircraft) to Ipoh. The Japanese begin a series of heavy
air attacks against Penang Island. The Indian 9th Division withstands attacks while organizing delaying positions south of Kota Bharu. Indian 11th Division
columns operating along the Thailand frontier attempt to delay enemy. A Far East Council is formed at Singapore.

MARIANA ISLANDS: A company of a Japanese Special Naval Landing Force and a Japanese Army detachment lands on Guam and captures the 271 Navy personnel and 122 Marines on the island.

PACIFIC OCEAN: The British Navy's Force Z under Admiral Tom Phillips left Singapore in the evening of 8 December to find the Japanese fleet. The force consists of the battleship HMS Prince of Wales (53), battlecruiser HMS Repulse (34), British destroyers HMS Electra (H
27), Express (H 61) and Tenedos (H 04) and Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire (D6.
The ships are spotted today in the South China Sea by the Japanese submarine HIJMS I-58 just before dawn and attacked by a force consisted of 60 "Nell" bombers (Mitsubishi G3M2 Navy Type 96 Attack Bombers (of
the Genzan and Mihoro Kokutais Naval Air Corps) operating with 26 "Betty" bombers (Mitsubishi G4M1 Navy Type 1 Attack Bombers) of the Kanoya Kokutai. All are based in French Indochina. The battleship HMS
Prince of Wales is hit by four torpedoes and sinks at 1233 hours local. The battlecruiser HMS Repulse is hit by 14 torpedoes and sinks at 1320 hours local.
The death toll from both ships is 840 men (Repulse 513, and the Prince Of Wales, 327). A total of 2,081 men are saved by the four escorting destroyers and taken back to Singapore. The Far Eastern Fleet commander, Admiral Sir Tom Phillips goes down with his ship. In this action,
the Japanese lost only four planes. After this disaster, the dominant role of battleships in war comes under grave doubt.
Four USN destroyers, USS Barker (DD-213), Bulmer (DD-222), Parrott (DD-21 and Stewart (DD-224) of Destroyer Division 58, USN Asiatic Fleet, that had been sent to help screen Phillips's ships, having arrived
at Singapore too late to sortie with the British force, search unsuccessfully for survivors before returning to Singapore.
In Memory of Able Seaman STEPHEN SHERIDAN D/MD/X 1995, H.M.S. Prince of Wales., Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, who died age 28 on Wednesday 10 December 1941. Son of Stephen and Hannah Sheridan, of West Derby, Liverpool. Remembered with honour PLYMOUTH NAVAL MEMORIAL.
An SBD Dauntless from the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6) sinks Japanese submarine HIJMS I-70 about 193 nautical miles (358 kilometers) northeast of Honolulu, Oahu, Territory of Hawaii, in position
23.45N, 155.35W. This is one of the submarines used to scout the Hawaiian area in connection with the Pearl Harbor attack and is the first Japanese combatant ship sunk by U.S. aircraft during World War II.

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: Two Japanese task forces, each consisting of about 2,000 men, arrive off northern Luzon from Formosa. Landings begin simultaneously at Aparri, on the north coast, and near Vigan on the west
coast. Far East Air Forces B-17 Flying Fortresses, P-40s, and Seversky P-35As attack the two convoys landing troops and equipment; a transport at Vigan is destroyed. The strikes include the much publicized attack of
Captain Colin P Kelly Jr on a warship off Aparri. Captain Kelly, who is killed when his B-17 is shot down by fighters as he is returning to Clark Field, is later posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service
Cross for destroying a battleship. However, later information reveals that he attacked the heavy cruiser HIJMS Ashigara, probably scoring near misses.
Cavite Navy Yard on Luzon is practically obliterated by
Japanese "Nell" (Mitsubishi G3M2, Navy Type 96 Attack Bombers) and "Betty" (Mitsubishi G4M1, Navy Type 1 Attack Bombers) bombers based on Formosa.
Destroyers USS Peary (DD-226) and Pillsbury (DD-227), submarines USS Seadragon (SS-194) and Sealion (SS-195), minesweeper USS Bittern (AM-36), and submarine tender USS Otus (AS-20), suffer varying degrees of damage from bombs or bomb fragments; ferry launch Santa Rita (YFB-681) is destroyed by a direct hit. Submarine rescue vessel USS Pigeon (ASR-
6) tows Seadragon out of the burning wharf area; minesweeper USS Whippoorwill (AM-35) recovers destroyer USS Peary, enabling both warships to be
repaired and returned to service. Minesweeper USS Bittern is gutted by fires. Antiaircraft fire from U.S. guns is ineffective. During the bombing of Manila Bay area, unarmed U.S. freighter SS Sagoland is damaged.
While flying to safety during the raid on Cavite, Lieutenant Harmon T. Utter's PBY Catalina of Patrol Squadron One Hundred One (VP-101) is attacked by three Japanese "Zeke" fighters (Mitsubishi A6M2, Navy
Type 0 Carrier Fighters) of the 3rd Kokutai (Naval Air Corps) based on Formosa; Chief Boatswain Earl D. Payne, Utter's bow gunner, shoots down one, thus scoring the U.S. Navy's first verifiable air-to-air "kill" of a Japanese plane in the Pacific War. Utter, as a commander, will later
coordinate the carrier air strikes that lead to the destruction of Japanese battleship Yamato on 7 April 1945.

UNITED STATES. A Treasury agent reports to Army authorities in San Francisco, California, that "an estimated 20,000 Japanese in the San Francisco metropolitan area were ready for organized action." The
Army staff immediately began planning for mass evacuation of West Coast Japanese.

WAKE ISLAND: Twenty six Japanese naval land attack planes from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands bomb Marine installations on Wilkes and Wake islets. During the interception of the bombers, Captain Henry T. Elrod, USMC, executive officer of Marine Fighting Squadron Two
Hundred Eleven (VMF-211), shoots down a "Nell" bomber (Mitsubishi G3M2, Navy Type 96 Attack Bomber); this is the first USMC air-to-air "kill" of the Pacific War. Japanese submarines HIJMS RO 65, RO 66, and RO 67
arrive off Wake. Shortly before midnight, submarine USS Triton (SS-201), patrolling south of the atoll, encounters a Japanese warship, probably a picket for the oncoming assault force.

GERMANY: Reichsfuehrer- SS (British Field Marshal and U.S. 5-star General) Heinrich Himmler, commander of the Schutzstaffel or SS, orders that commissions, made up of physicians who were formerly concerned with
"euthanasia" are to be set up to "comb out" prisoners in
concentration camps who are unfit for work, are ill, or are "psychopaths. " Tens of thousands of prisoners, picked out in this way by psychiatrist Professor Werner Heyde, Professor Nitsche and other physicians, are killed by
gas in the extermination centers at Sonnenstein and Hartheim.

[k9kiwi]

11 December ( International Dateline thing)

5 NZ Infantry Brigade starts the attack on Gazala.

A quote from one of the solidiers who had been through Greece and Crete...

Sergeant Hargreaves,44 who was on the left flank of the advancing company, has also left a stirring account:

‘… So steady was the advance that the gunners could not range quickly enough with the result that the shells were bursting behind our line, though to me it seemed that several direct hits were made on the right flank but the boys came out of the smoke and dust still in line, never faltering. It was a magnificent sight to see that thin line moving steadily forward into a hail of lead, with shells of all sizes … bursting all around…. the fact that the ground was sandy saved more casualties…. One more dash brought us to within bayonet reach. We crossed the ground swiftly, some of the boys shouting encouragement to each other. From my position on the left flank, I could see our line, straight enough to bring joy to any bayonet instructor, stretching away to the right flank. Roaring “Forward!”, I came up ready for the final dash. It made the blood sing to see the boys leap forward, a steady line of gleaming steel backed by grim faces. Nothing short of death could stop them now.’

[syscom3]

Thanks K9.... but this thread is for the Pacific War.

Maybe smeone wants to start a thread for the European theater.

The mods could make them a "sticky".

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Go ahead and start threads for the ETO as well. I can put them as a sticky. I think this is a good idea and gives a history of the war from the ETO and the PTO.

[Wildcat]

Good round up of the days events Sys. All I can add is -
10 dec 1941
Dutch submarine K-XI attacked Japanese landing fleet north east of Malacca.
Submarine K-XIII unsuccessfully attacked the Japanese invasion fleet off the north east coast of Malaya peninsula.
Submarine 0-16 damaged a Japanese transport ship which was either the Ayatosan Maru ( 9788t) or the Sakura Maru (7170t)

GUAM: At 04:00 hours some 400 Japanese troops of the 5th Defense Force from Saipan Island came ashore at Dungcas Beach, north of Agana. While advancing toward the island's capital Agana some Japanese troops clash with the Insular Force Guard unit. In the meantime the South Seas Detached Force (app. 5,500 men) under the command of Major-General Tomitaro Horii made separate landings at Tumon Bay in the north, on the southwest coast near Merizo, and on the eastern shore of the island at Talafofo Bay. At Agana, the lightly-armed Guamanians, commanded by Marine First Lieutenant Charles S. Todd, stood off the early Japanese attacks, but had to retreat. The Japanese were simply too strong. The island's governor and military commander, Captain G.J. McMillin, decided not to endanger the lives of the thousands of civilians and soldiers in his charge by any further resistance. Shortly after 06:00 hours he surrendered the island to the Japanese naval commander and sent orders to the US marine detachment of approximately 122 men (Lieutenant Colonel William K. McNulty) at Sumay Barracks not to resist. The word did not reach all defenders, and scattered fighting continued throughout the day as the Japanese spread out to complete occupation of the island. Soon all resistance ended, and the entire garrison of approximately 430 men surrendered.

[syscom3]

Thanks Wildcat. Keep en eye out for ANZAC operations in the PTO. You have some good stuff to post.


AUSTRALIA: Prime Minister John Curtin tells British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill that he favors the establishment of "a supreme
authority for the higher direction and coordinated control of Allied strategy"
in the Far East.

BURMA: Japanese aircraft bomb Tavoy Airdrome near Rangoon beginning
their offensive against the country.

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS: Six Hawaiian Air Force B-18 Bolos fly a sea-search
mission. Similar missions by B-17 Flying Fortresses, B-18s, and A-20
Havocs are flown each day for the remainder of the year; several
submarines are sighted and some are attacked but without positive evidence of hits

HONG KONG: Company D of the Winnipeg Grenadiers dispatched to the
mainland to strengthen the Gin Drinkers' Line against the Japanese
invaders, sees some action, thus becoming the first Canadian Army Unit to
fight in World War II. At midday. British Major General Christopher
Maltby, General Officer Commanding Hong Kong, orders the mainland troops to withdraw to the island; the Winnipeg Grenadiers cover the Royal
Scots' withdrawal down the Kowloon Peninsula.

INTERNATIONAL: Political actions:
Germany, Italy and Japan sign a new pact barring a separate
peace with the U.S. or the U.K. The pact states:
- Article I - Italy, Germany and Japan will henceforth conduct in
common and jointly a war which has been imposed on them by the
United States of America and England, by all means at their disposal and
until the end of hostilities.
- Article II - Italy, Germany and Japan undertake each for himself
that none of the parties to the present accord will conclude either
armistice or peace, be it with the United States or with England
without complete and reciprocal agreement [of the three signatories to this
pact].
- Article III - Italy, Germany and Japan, even after the
victorious conclusion of this war, will collaborate closely in the spirit of
the Tripartite Pact, concluded Sept. 21, 1940, in order to realize and
establish an equitable new order in the world.
- Article IV - The present accord is effective immediately on its
signature and remains in force for the duration of the Tripartite
Pact, signed Sept. 21, 1940. The high contracting parties of this accord
will at an opportune moment agree among themselves the means of
implementing Article III above of this accord.
Political actions:
- Both Italy and Germany join Japan in a declaration of war
against the US.
- Hungary breaks diplomatic relations with the U.S..
- Mexico breaks relations with Germany and Italy.
- The Netherlands declares war on Italy.
- Poland declares war on Japan.

MALAYA: The Indian 9th Division, Indian III Corps, abandons the two
remaining airfields in Kelantan (Gong Kedah and Machang) in order to
protect communications. The Japanese exert strong pressure against
one Indian 11th Division column on the Kroh-Patani road and force the
other, on the road to Singora, back toward partially prepared positions at
Jitra. The RAF, now greatly depleted in strength, adopts a policy of
conducting bomber operations only at night until adequate fighter
support is available and of using fighters primarily for defense of the
Singapore Naval Base and for protection of convoys bringing reinforcements.
Indian III Corps troops are thus denied much close air support.

PACIFIC OCEAN: Japanese submarine HIJMS I-9 torpedoes and shells a
5,645 ton, unarmed U.S. freighter about 680 nautical miles (1 259
kilometers) northeast of Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii. The ship
sinks tomorrow. One lifeboat is launched and all but four men reach Hawaii on 20 December.

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: The Japanese Aparri force on Luzon continues
rapidly south along Route 5 toward Tuguegarao and Laoag and its
airfield fall to the Vigan force. The Japanese begin mining San Bernardino and Surigao Straits while commercial vessels withdraw from Manila Bay.
LUZON - More than 100 Japanese aircraft hit targets at Clark Field, Batangas, and Olongapo on Luzon Island. No hits are scored by the single B-17 that is sent against Japanese transports at Vigan. The 3d Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor), 24th Pursuit Group (Interceptor), transfers from Nichols Field to Ternate, Luzon and operating from Del Carmon, Luzon with P-40's. Japanese forces begin landing on Luzon
By the end of the day, all but one B-17 Flying Fortress has
been dispatched from Clark Field, Luzon, to Del Monte Field on Mindanao,
which is beyond the range of Japanese aircraft.

UNITED STATES: The U.S. Congress votes to declare war on Germany and
Italy. With only one short speech, the Senate voted 88-to-0 for war
against Germany, 90-to-0 for war with Italy. There was one
abstention, Republican Pacifist Jeannette Rankin called out 'Present' - a
refusal to vote. The House of Representatives voted war with Germany, 393-to-0.
After the vote is taken the chamber is filled with the noise of stamping
feet from the galleries as the public stomped out. It seems that the war
with Italy vote (399-to-0) wasn't worth waiting around for. The
resolution states, "Therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the United States of America in Congress
assembled, that the state of war between the United States and the Government of Germany
which has thus been thrust upon the United States is hereby formally
declared; and the President is hereby authorized and directed to
employ the entire naval and military forces of the government to carry on
war against the Government of Germany; and to bring the conflict to
a successful termination, all of the resources of the country are
hereby pledged by the Congress of the United States." The Congress also
votes to use U.S. forces anywhere in the world. The term of those enlisted
under the Selective Service Act is extended for the duration plus
six months.
The U.S. Army's Western Defense Command is established with
Lieutenant General John L. DeWitt as commander. One of the units
assigned is the 4th Air Force at Hamilton Field, San Rafael, California, which
is reassigned from the Air Force Combat Command to the new unit. The
West Coast is declared a theater of war.The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) detains 1,370
Japanese Americans classified as "dangerous enemy aliens."
The Buick Division of the General Motors Corporation lowers its car prices to reflect the absence of spare tires or inner tubes from its new cars. Widespread shortages have led to many quotas and laws designed to conserve America's resources. One of these laws prohibits spare tires on new cars. Rubber, produced overseas, has become almost impossible to get. People did not mind the spare-tire law too much, though. They are too busy dealing with quotas for gasoline, meat, butter, shoes, and other essentials.

WAKE ISLAND: The USN submarine USS Triton (SS-201), patrolling south
of Wake, attacks the Japanese ship she had encountered shortly before
midnight; she is unsuccessful.
The 450 Marines of the Wake Detachment, 1st Defense Battalion,
repel an invasion by Japanese troops sinking the destroyer HIJMS
Hayate with gunfire while F4F-3 Wildcat pilots sink the destroyer HIJMS
Kisaragi with bombs. The Japanese invasion force retires towards the Marshall
Islands. Around 0900 hours, 17 Nell bombers (Mitsubishi G3M2,
Navy Type 96 Attack Bombers) of the Chitose Kokutai (Naval Air Corps)
based on Roi Island, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands, bomb the naval
guns on the island; the Marine pilots shoot down two of the Nells.

[Soundbreaker Welch?]

Not bad, Marines.

[Wildcat]

I have to say I love that siggie!

[Nonskimmer]

Good posts, fellas.

[syscom3]

From the AAF logbook for this date:
USMC F4F Wildcats sink four large Japanese vessels off Wake. This is the first significant American victory of the Pacific war.

LUZON - More than 100 Japanese aircraft hit targets at Clark Field, Batangas, and Olongapo on Luzon Island. No hits are scored by the single B-17 that is sent against Japanese transports at Vigan. The 3d Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor), 24th Pursuit Group (Interceptor), transfers from Nichols Field to Ternate, Luzon and operating from Del Carmon, Luzon with P-40's. Japanese forces begin landing on Luzon

Elsewhere:
BURMA: The Japanese begin small-scale operations, using infiltration tactics. From Thailand, a small force crosses into lower Tenasserim unopposed. British General Sir Archibald P. Wavell, Commander-in-Chief India, is given responsibility for Burma, previously within Air
Chief Marshal Sir Robert Brooke-Popham' s Far Eastern Command, and is promised reinforcements to strengthen the small garrison, fighting strength of which does not exceed 30 battalions during the campaign. Lieutenant
General D. K. MacLeod's Burma Army, charged with protecting the Burma Road and Tenasserim airfields, is a heterogeneous group of Burmese, Indian, and British forces, some poorly trained, formed into the Burma 1st
Division (Burma 1st and 2d Brigades and Indian 13th Brigade) and Indian 16th Brigade. The 16 obsolete RAF fighters on hand are augmented by a squadron of the American Volunteer Group (AVG) fighters, which is flown in to Mingaladon from the AVG base in China. Air strength is eventually increased but not enough to alter ground operations materially.

EAST INDIES: The bulk of the Australian "Sparrow Force" arrives at Koepang, Dutch Timor. This Force is the garrison given the code-name Sparrow Force that is to defend the island and protect the airfield at Penfui. The troops begin to take up defensive positions around Koepang, the capital of west Timor, and the aerodrome at Penfui.
This component of the Force comprises the Tasmanian 2/40th BattalionAustralian Imperial Force (AIF) supported by artillery, signals, medical and
headquarters troops. Sparrow Force's anti aircraft capability is provided by a British unit, 79th Anti Aircraft Battery Royal Army, veterans of the Battle of Britain. They are joined by one of Australia's new Independent
Companies, the largely Western Australian, No.2 or the 2/2nd Independent Company. The Australian elements of Sparrow Force total 70 officers and 1330 men. The existing Netherlands East Indies garrison numbers about 500. At Penfui RAAF Hudson medium bombers from No. 2 Squadron begin flying anti shipping sorties.

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS: Japanese Naval Aviation Pilot First Class NISHIKAICHI Shigenori begins, with the aid of HARADA Yoshio, a Japanese resident of Niihau Island, to terrorize the inhabitants of the island into returning papers confiscated on 7 December. In response to this
campaign of intimidation, the islanders flee to the hills.

HONG KONG: British troops evacuate Kowloon in any vessel that can sail to Hong Kong Island. The Royal Engineers destroy anything useful on the north side.

INTERNATIONAL: Declarations of war:
- Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia declare war on the U.K. and U.S.
- Croatia and Romania declare war on the U.S.
- Haiti, El Salvador and Panama declare war on Germany and Italy

MALAYA: British Lieutenant General Arthur Percival, General Officer Commanding Malaya Command, decides to withdraw the Indian III Corps from Kelantan since the airfields there are already in possession of the Japanese; movement of surplus supplies to rear is begun. Troops fight delaying actions while awaiting rolling stock in which to withdraw. The Japanese penetrate the Jitra position and force the Indian 11th Division task force back to the Kedah River. The Indian 11th Division force,
called the Krohcol force, on the Kroh-Patani road, also falls back under pressure and at midnight 12/13 December, passes to the direct command of corps. The Indian 12th Brigade Group is released from reserve for action on the west coast.

PACIFIC OCEAN: The unarmed 6,210 ton U.S. freighter SS Vincent en route from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, to Panama, is shelled and sunk by Japanese armed merchant cruisers Aikoku Maru and Hokoku Maru
about 555 nautical miles (1 028 kilometers) west-northwest of Easter
Island in position 22.41S, 118.19W. All 36 crewmen are captured by the Japanese; two die in captivity.
In the Sulu Sea, USN submarine USS S-38 (SS-143) mistakenly torpedoes and sinks Norwegian merchantman SS Hydra II west of Cape Calavite, Mindoro, Philippine Islands, believing her to be a Japanese auxiliary. SS Hydra II had been en route from Bangkok, Thailand, to Hong Kong, when she is diverted to Manila by the outbreak of war.
In the South China Sea, Dutch submarines operate off Malaya against Japanese invasion shipping. HNMS K XII torpedoes and sinks a Japanese army cargo ship about 1.4 nautical miles (2,6 kilometers) northeast of Kota Bharu, in position 06.08N, 102.16E.; meanwhile, HNMS O 16 torpedoes and damages three Japanese army cargo ships off Patani/Singora, Thailand.
The USN heavy cruiser USS Pensacola (CA-24) departed Pearl Harbor 29 November 1941 with a convoy bound for Manila in the Philippines. Today, the U.S. troops aboard the troop transports are organized as Task Force South Pacific and placed under command of Brigadier General
Julian F. Barnes. The convoy is ordered to proceed to Australian.

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: The Japanese make another preliminary landing, at Legaspi, southern Luzon. The task force of 2,500 men from Palau Islands, Caroline Islands, goes ashore unopposed and secures Legaspi and the airfield. Major General George M. Parker, Jr., whose South Luzon Force consists of 41st and 51st Divisions (Philippine Army), sends elements of the 51st forward to delay the Japanese, but contact is not made for several days. Tuguegarao Airfield falls to the Aparri force early in morning. Japanese planes attack Luzon in force. Over 100 Japanese aircraft hit targets at Clark Field, Batangas, and Olongapo on Luzon Island. The single Far East Air Force B-17 Flying Fortress that is sent against Japanese transports at Vigan damages a transport.
Captain Jesus A. Villamor led the open-cockpit monoplane P-26A Peashooter fighterss of the 6th Pursuit Squadron Philippine Air Force, the only ones of their type to see action in World War II. Villamor shoots down a Japanese "Nell" bomber (Mitsubishi G3M2, Navy Type 96 Attack Bomber) of the First Kokutai (Naval Air Corps) based at Tainan, Formosa, over Batangas.

UNITED STATES: The Government seizes French ships in U.S. ports. One of the ships seized is the largest and most luxurious ocean liner on the seas at this time, France's SS Normandie, while it is docked at New York City. The ship is 1,029 feet (314 meters) long and a beam of 119 feet (36 meters), displaces 85,000 tons and can do 32.1 knots. She was placed in "protective custody" by the Navy when France surrendered to the
Germans in June 1940; it was clear that the U.S. government was not about to let a ship of such size and speed fall into the hands of the Germans, which it certainly would upon returning to France. She is formally
requisitioned by the Maritime Commission on 16 December, transferred to the USN on the 24th, renamed Lafayette and assigned hull number AP-53. A contract for her conversion to a troop transport is awarded to Robins Dry Dock & Repair Co., a subsidiary of Todd Shipyards, Inc., on 27 December.
The Naval Air Transport Service (NATS) is established under the Chief of Naval Operations to provide rapid air delivery of critical equipment, spare parts, and specialist personnel to naval activities and fleet forces all over the world.

WAKE ISLAND: Two Japanese "Mavis" reconnaissance flying boats (Kawanishi H6K4, Navy Type 97 Flying-boats) of the Yokohama Kokutai
(Naval Air Corps) based in the Marshall Islands bomb the island in a pre-dawn raid. One is shot down by a Marine F4F Wildcat pilot.